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[Are pertussis vaccination guidelines applied to adults and health care workers?]
1Service des maladies infectieuses, centre hospitalier de la région d'Annecy, 1, rue du Trésum, 74011 Annecy cedex, France.
Insights
French health authorities recommended pertussis (whooping cough) boosters for adolescents and close contacts. However, awareness among mothers and healthcare workers remains low, hindering implementation of these crucial infant protection strategies.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Vaccinology
- Epidemiology
Context:
- Rising pertussis (whooping cough) incidence in newborns prompted new French vaccination guidelines.
- Recommendations include a booster dose for 13-year-olds and additional doses for parents, siblings, and healthcare workers.
- The study evaluated the adoption and understanding of these guidelines within healthcare settings.
Purpose:
- To assess healthcare worker (HCW) adherence to new pertussis vaccination recommendations.
- To determine if mothers in maternity wards were informed about and consented to the recommendations.
- To identify barriers to the implementation of pertussis booster vaccination strategies.
Summary:
- A survey of 375 HCWs and 100 mothers revealed low awareness of new pertussis booster recommendations (1% mothers, 55% HCWs).
- While HCWs deemed recommendations justified, practical application challenges were noted (21.3%).
- Despite 75% of HCWs reporting informing mothers, only 14.5% documented vaccination status, indicating a need for improved educational campaigns.
Impact:
- Low awareness and inconsistent application of pertussis vaccination recommendations risk infant health.
- Targeted information and educational initiatives are essential for successful implementation.
- Effective vaccination strategies are crucial to reduce pertussis transmission to vulnerable infants.
Unlabelled:
The prevalence of pertussis in newborns led French health authorities to recommend using a booster dose at 13 years of age, and adding a booster dose for parents, siblings, and health care workers.
Objective:
The aim of the study was to check if the new recommendations were applied by health care workers and if mothers still in the maternity ward were informed and agreed with these recommendations.
Method:
A questionnaire assessing knowledge, acceptance of the recommendations was sent to different health care workers and given to mothers in two maternity wards.
Results:
Three hundred and seventy-five questionnaires filled out by health care workers were analyzed (298 general practitioners, 30 pediatricians, 24 obstetricians, 21 midwives) and 100 questionnaires by mothers. Only 1% of mothers and 55% of health care workers knew about the new recommendations, but only 8.3% of obstetricians and 4.8% of midwives. 92.6% of health care workers considered they were justified, but not applicable in 21.3%, 75% declared informing mothers systematically, and 14.5% documenting their pertussis vaccine status. The vaccination status was greater than 80% for diphtérie-tétanos-polio (dTP) in health care workers, 29.5% of these workers and 49% of mothers considered being vaccinated in a near future.
Conclusion:
Information, educational campaigns and specific actions are needed to apply the new recommendations which will warrant the success of targeted vaccination, in order to reduce pertussis in infants of more than six months of age.
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